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NLSIU Bangalore is vying for the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) permission to allow the college to award its public policy course students the degree for which they signed up for in 2014. The law school has time until August.

NLSIU began a post-graduate course in public policy, for the first time ever, in 2014. It called the course the “Master of Public Policy” – a nomenclature which is used globally, for instance, at the Oxford University and the Harvard Kennedy School. In NLSIU's case, 40 students took admission to the course in 2014 and 49 students took admission in 2015.

However, around four months ago, the law school informed the students of the course that it lacked permission from the UGC to award them a degree with the name “Master of Public Policy”, and if permission was not forthcoming, the degree that would be awarded to them would be an “MA in Public Policy”, where MA stands for Master of Arts.

A source with knowledge of the development confirmed the news and told Legally India that NLSIU had also formed a committee, around three months ago, with three of the course’s faculty members and several MPP students, to prepare a case for the UGC. The aim: to convince the UGC to accept NLSIU’s original "Master of Public Policy"' nomenclature for the program.

According to two sources, NLSIU had requested the UGC for such permission in 2014 too before starting the program, but the UGC had denied permission at the time. It is understood that JGLS Sonepat, The Azim Premji University and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) had also attempted offering MPP degrees in India, but after also having been denied the UGC’s permission they had changed the nomenclature for their offered post-graduate degree in public policy.

A source with knowledge of the MPP, who declined to be named, said that the course outline of NLSIU’s MPP programme was comparable to global standards and syllabus for such courses, with students undertaking unique clinical workshops, research work and dissertation. The course is taught by “distinguished academics”, said the source, such as ICSSR National Fellow Prof G Hargopal, TISS Prof N Jayaram, former NLSIU registrar Prof Babu Mathew, Osmania university Prof BN Reddy and Dr Abdul Azeez from the Institute of Social and Economic Change.

“An institution such as the NLSIU should not be subject to the same standards [for degree nomenclatures] as mushrooming private universities,” the source commented, adding that after the internal committee submitted its report to NLSIU vice chancellor Prof Venkat Rao this week, and the NLSIU academic council ratified the report, the law school would work with the UGC to expedite the body’s consideration of NLSIU’s case.

He said that it would take at least 15 days to convene an academic council on the issue, after Prof Rao signs the committee’s report.

UGC perspective

In 2013 the UGC had adopted the degree nomenclature recommendations submitted by Indian Law Institute (ILI) Prof Dr Furqan Ahmad’s committee. Since then, the commission does not allow colleges to award any degrees whose name is not included in the recommended list.

The “Master of Public Policy” does not fall on the list.

A source within the UGC told Legally India that after 2013 the commission had become extremely stringent about maintaining uniformity in the application of its rules on degree nomenclatures.

“There is a list of specified degrees which the UGC has, which is essential to maintain uniformity and to maintain standards. Because when one candidate goes from one university to another, if the degree [awarded] is not on the same pattern the issue of equivalence emerges leading to a lot of difficulty. So UGC became strict with respect to adherence to uniformity,” the source commented.

“But you can make a special request to the UGC [for approval of a special nomenclature not on the UGC’s list]. It has been done in the past also. NLSIU did all this at a very late stage, after admitting students.”

“For a Masters in [any stream] the UGC has no objection. But the thing is you should honour the UGC's academic and administrative authority. You can’t try to ignore the UGC because the UGC is also doing these things to make the procedure and processes simple.”

The UGC source added that “it is not a big academic crime that [NLSIU has] done” but the fate of the degree now “depends on the attitude of the people” before whom NLSIU will present its application. Since the commission is far more strict now than it was before 2013, the result could go either way, he said.

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Hardly matters whether the degree is called an MPP or MA in Pubic Policy ---- which I think is what TISS, Azim Premji and Jindal offer.

What DOES matter though is whether the faculty and placements are good enough. I do not think the faculty at NLSIU is good enough. As far as placements go, there are no jobs in the field as entry to government is (unfortunately) though the stupid UPSC exam. Thus, the course is a waste of time and money in India. An IAS coaching centre (sadly) has better prospects.

Also, if Venkata Rao is referring to Azim Premji and Jindal as "mushrooming" private colleges he is either a crank or a liar. Stellar graduates of NLSIU like Sudhir Krishnaswamy and Abhay Raj Naik teach at Azim Premji's policy school --- people who can outclass his own faculty, including him. And although the student quality at Jindal is poor and it is meant for rich kids who fail CLAT, the faculty is superior to other law schools in India.

If NLSIU was denied permission by UGC in 2014, how did NLSIU advt the program with a name for which it was denied permission? Is it not misleading? Can it not be construed as "cheating" and the responsible persons arrested? Litigators please pitch in.

Venkat has some nerve to claim that the 'MPP' course is "comparable to global standards" or has "unique clinical workshops" or is taught by “distinguished academics”.

The truth us that the contents, syllabus and reading was so ad hoc that they desperately sent out emails to alumni asking for help AFTER putting out admission notifications. The course is a mishmish of what is taught at JNU (oops, wrong word) and the faculty are the usual suspects: Japhet, Lizzie, etc. basically old wine in a new bottle. Something like 1st year social science courses elaborated for a bunch of bakras who pay through their noses.

It's sad to see Venky demean Azim Premji university. Guess he's jealous no alumni wants to come back and stay after the shameful treatment dealt out by he and his clerks (padma, who else).

Anyway this course is an utter waste in India given how appointments to public positions are made.

Even after so many years, the NLS's remain haunts for LL.B only. All other courses are treated like dirty step children.

How many of NLS faculty have published in the last year? When I read about some of the Prof at US Law schools, they sound equal to our Senior Counsels in their content. Can that be said of any of the NLS' faculty in India including their Hon'ble VC?

So much time is spent on trifles in India, that there is no time for "content".

Prachi and Kian, can you please interview the professor who wrote this: the great AK Poddar? You have featured petitions authored by him (but written by someone else) on your site. If you interview him, your site will get 1 lakh hits.

Good point. Kian please do a story on this. If Azim Premji and Jindal are crap, how come bright graduates of NLSIU (and other NLUs) flock there to teach? How come NLSIU is dominated by grads of Andhra Univ, Mysore Univ,, Gulbarg Univ etc? I think you should do a story on how many NLU grads teach at NLSIU. They don't go to Jindal just for the money. Even NLUD, which pays much less than Jindal, attracts good graduates of NLSIU and other places .The answer lies in academic freedom and a good administration.

Please do a story on this People like Rao, Ishwar Bhat etc need to be exposed.

If Legally India has to remain in business, you must cover substantive issues like lawyers' attack on Kanaiyya in Delhi etc. Dont take up trivial cases like NLS or NUJS etc. Who reads them when there are hot potatoes like Vikram Chauhan?

If legally India has to be in business, you must cover controversial issues like how lawyers beat up students in Delhi. Leave trivial issues like NLS and NUJS. Students have better lives there! Who will read these things when there are hot potatoes like Vikram Chauhan, who claim to be lawyers and beat up students and media?

An institution such as the NLSIU should not be subject to the same standards [for degree nomenclatures] as mushrooming private universities,” the source commented.You call TISS a ''mushrooming private institute'' and just before this paragraph it is mentioned that one of the TISS professors also teaches the course in NLSUI. This shows how mentally retarded you are.